Want to invest in real estate with no financial risk and no money or credit? Wholesaling houses is a popular choice. I personally think wholesaling can be a challenging way to get started, but the fact that you can get started in real estate investing without any barrier of entry makes wholesaling an attractive option. If you can get good at this side of the business, you will be success with anything you want to do. The reason I say that is finding deals is what makes a wholesaler successful. If you can get good at finding deals, you have unlimited potential.

Once you find a deal, you need to understand how to sell it to make your profit. Here are four ways you can structure your wholesale properties.

Contract Assignment: This is the easiest, but comes with some risks if not done correctly. It is also somewhat restrictive as bank owned properties will prevent this. This works well when you negotiate your deals directly with the seller. The way this works is you will get a house under contract and then you will assign your rights in the contract to another buyer for a fee. That new buyer will take on the rights and responsibilities in the contract and will close in your place. It is best to get your fee paid up front, but it is very common to get your fee when your buyer buys the house. Here are a few things to keep in mind when assigning contracts.

Be sure that you always disclose to your seller that you are or may assign the agreement to another buyer for a fee. I suggest you actually put this in the contract. Sellers should be OK with this if you are transparent that you are an investor who buys houses for a profit before you start to negotiate.

I would get money from your money that is at least enough to cover any earnest money you put up with your seller. That way if your buyer defaults on the agreement you at least cover your costs. Always try to get the entire fee paid when you assign the contract.

I like this way the best because it is easy to do on your end, it is easy for the buyer and the buyer’s lender, and it is the cheapest way to go.

Double Close: This just means that you actually buy the house and then resell it. There are several ways to do this, but the most common is to buy and sell in the same day or within a day. Typically, you will need to bring in financing to get your closing done with the seller, which is why this is my least preferred method to wholesale. Also, because you have two closings you will have two sets of closing costs, so it is the most expensive way too. With that said, some wholesalers prefer this method because they do not have to disclose to the seller their intent to resell and they can both keep their deal with the seller and their deal with their buyer private. It is believed by some that this is a good way to protect your profits. The information will all become public record at some point, but that is well after the closing.

This is the method you will use by default if you do not do your contract on the front end correctly, so we do see double closing frequently.

Flip the Entity: This has become the most common way to wholesale in my market. Most, if not all, the successful wholesalers will use this strategy. Especially when wholesaling foreclosures where contract assignments are forbidden.

The way this works is the wholesaler will set up a separate entity, like an LLC or a Trust, and put that entity as the buyer of the house to be wholesaled. They will then sell the entity itself for a fee. The benefit with using this strategy is that actual contract on the house does not change. Since the buyer of the house is the entity, there are no issues with any regulation or assignment restrictions. The downside is it could be more work because of the extra step to set up the entity, and there could be additional fees to register the entity with the state. The risk for the buyer is whenever you buy a company you are buying all of it. So, if the entity was used in another transaction and owes money to anyone, the new buyer could be on the hook. Knowing this, the best way to do this transaction is with a brand-new entity used for this one purpose.

Relationship Close: I don’t know if there is an actual name for this method. In fact, it is rarely seen. What I mean by relationship close is that you have such a strong relationship with a buyer that you write offers in the buyer’s name. For this to work, you should be a licensed agent and preview houses for your buyer. You would need to understand their criteria and only offer on houses they will want to buy. I have a client that works this way. He has an agent write his offers and the agent/wholesaler gets paid a commission with each successful closing. They do 2 to 3 deals a month with this strategy. My client just signs contracts without looking at them at this point and trusts what the wholesaler is putting together solid offers. There is always an inspection clause protecting the buyer and the agent, but more than 9 out of 10 houses that go under contract close. That is because the agent/wholesaler knows the business and knows what this buyer will buy.

Recently I found myself wondering and talking about some of the quirky and brilliant ways people from around the world use tents. Consequently I pondered about the possibility that some people have contemplated or even opted for living in a tent permanently. Inspired by this idea, I dug a bit further into this topic of permanent tented accommodation.

What would living in a tent full time entail? Some individuals might be unnerved by this idea, while others might be thrilled and excited to take on the challenge and some may have no alternative. Whatever the reason or justification – there are 5 indisputable and great benefits of moving from your modern home to kicking it in a tent.

1. The cost effectiveness is clear

Finding the right location to pitch your tent will definitely decrease your monthly cost of rent, electricity and the like. The idea of saving on your expenses in this matter might seem slightly extreme, but compare it to running a modern household and you may just change your mind. Naturally, you might be concerned about cold winters, no internet and not having warm showers, but there are ways to avoid that. You could invest in a proper tent and enough winter provisions, sign-up at a gym that has shower amenities and use the free internet offered by libraries, coffee-shops and even shopping malls.

2. It will be an invigorating challenge and a noteworthy experience

Having a luxury, purpose-designed, tent will definitely make the experience more comfortable and less effortful, but it will still be a demanding challenge to live in a tent full time. There is, however, a multitude of people who find pleasure, excitement and gratification from such difficult tasks and many people thrive in it! Facing and conquering a challenge like this will without a doubt be tremendously rewarding and enriching. It will not only emancipate you and boost your self-respect and dignity, but it will also offer you a sense of accomplishment being able to live and take care of yourself like our ancestors, before modernism.

3. It will significantly reduce your Eco Footprint

We are all becoming increasingly aware of the importance of reducing and the impact of our Eco Footprint. This starts with being more conscious of leaving less of a negative ecological footprint on Earth and ensuring it is as small as possible. Comparing the running a modern household to living in a tent – it is clear that a tent leaves an immensely small Eco Footprint. If you are already concerned about Earth’s future and reducing the impact you have on Mother Nature – you are most likely thoroughly ready and able to live in a tent permanently.

4. It will allow you to experience forest bathing

Although the thought of submerging yourself in the open waters hidden within forests is enchanting – forest bathing actually refers to spending time amongst trees and is an established way of increasing you happiness and health. Japanese studies have uncovered that the phytoncides released by plants aid in regulating your body, improve the immune system and increases air intake – which leads to happiness and increased health.

5. It offers you a less complicated way of life

Modern life is often characterised by a constant rush and a milieu of complication. Life in a tent forces you to pay attention to the things that are truly important. Tent-living is a way of life that is simpler and more focused on what really matters, as well as a shift in true perspective. Due to few people having experienced a genuine simple life – living in a tent will very much be life changing and meaningful moment.

While researching this article I happened upon an astonishing variety of, what is coined as, glamping tents. Some companies put a double bed and a carpet inside and call it glamping and then others deliver tent structures with flooring, proper windows and doors, bathroom amenities and beautifully decorated interiors.

Choosing the best manager for your property can promote your real estate investment or even break it. You find managers in all parts of the market and it is important to tell the good apart from the bad.

Messaging and branding

The outbound branding and messaging that the company uses is an important factor that can be used to determine what they are really like. To be able to understand them and their mode of operation. Then you need to ask questions.

Documentation

The first thing that you should get to know is whether the company is licensed and recognized by the right body. You need to ensure that you get to know what kind of properties they manage and then get references. You should never move on with the deal if the company does not want or is not able to give you the necessary documentation. When you see the documentation, then you can comfortably say that their operations are legitimate.

You should also get to know the following things about the company:

How they set and collect rent
How maintenance and repairs are handled?
If property inspections are done
Retention and marketing of tenants
How the tenant and owner funds are handled?
How they do tenant screening.

The other things that you should talk to them about include:

Their management fees
The management contract

The above should be done to about three companies that you may have shortlisted before you can hire them. You should remain vigilant and don’t settle for the first company that you come across regardless of how good they seem to be. There is really no harm in talking to other companies. Talking to others confirms that the initial preference was the best and you may even have some more questions. Young never know, the next company could actually be better than the first one.

If you do not take time to talk to others, then you will have nothing to compare with. It is important to have an idea about how other companies operate to be certain that you are indeed making the right decision. There are many databases that you can use to locate management companies near you.

You need to appreciate the fact that finding a manager for an investment that you made is a very important and big decision. You should do a thorough research before you settle for just anyone. There are many qualities that you should consider when you are picking a great organization.

You should try getting referrals from various sources. This is one of the best ways because you will know the experiences of other people first hand before choosing. You may get some amazing tips about the whole choosing process. Since referrals can sometimes be biased, you should get them from all corners. If you receive same referral about a certain company, it could very well be true after all, regardless of whether it is a good opinion or a bad one.